Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Ruth Neely gets another 15 minutes from the Wyoming Supreme Court

In 2014 Neely said, preemptively, that due to religious objections, she would not
perform same-sex marriages. This prompted the Wyoming Commission on
Judicial Conduct and Ethics to begin an investigation. The Commission
recommended to the Wyoming Supreme Court that Neely be removed from the
bench.

On Tuesday, by a 3-2 vote, the Wyoming Supreme Court said Ruth Neely, a magistrate in the small northwestern Wyoming town of Pinedale, violated the state's code of judicial conduct. What were the dissenting judges thinking? This will undoubtedly propel Neely back into the Christian spotlight.

According to the ruling: “No judge can turn down a request to perform a marriage for reasons that undermine the integrity of the judiciary by demonstrating a lack of independence and impartiality … she must either perform marriage ceremonies regardless of the couple's sexual orientation,” or decline to perform any marriage ceremonies at all. The Court, however, did not remove Neely from the bench. ADF's Jim Campbell claimed victory.